The Lebanon is a country, Arabic in language, but very diverse
in religion and culture. There are Maronite Christians (affiliated
to Rome), Greek orthodox Christians, Sunni Muslims, Shi'ite Muslims,
Druse (a group which has separated from mainstream Islam) and
others.

From the time of the Muslim conquest in the seventh century
it was the custom to leave each religious community to govern
itself under its own leaders. Thus the invading Arab Muslims
appointed the Christian bishops, of various sects, to be answerable
to the Muslim government for the tax levied on non-Muslims.

The same system continued under the Ottoman Empire. The area
of modern Lebanon was part of the Ottoman Vilayet (province)
of Syria, ruled from Damascus (Esh Sham). During the 19th century
persecution of Lebanese Christians by the Ottomans resulted in
their appealing to France for protection.

The Lebanon in its present boundaries was created by the French
who were granted a Mandate of Syria by the League of Nations
at the end of the first world war. The French relationship to
the area goes back to the Crusades, mainly led by French nobles
and royalty.

In 1919 they set the borders larger than they had been as
an Ottoman Sanjak (District) by including the towns of Tripoli,
Sidon and the Bekaa valley. They did this to favor the Christian
Maronites. The result was that, whereas under the Ottomans the
Maronites had had a small enclave which was their own (though
with some persecution from time to time), in the post-Ottoman
Lebanon the Christians were a minority within the state as a
whole. This may be considered the root of the civil war which
has occurred during the 1970s and 80s, killing an estimated 130,000
people.

A constitution was agreed in 1926 during the French Mandate.

On independence in 1943 the communities came to an agreement
by which the President was to be a Maronite Christian and the
Prime Minister a Sunni Muslim, while the Speaker was to be a
Shi'ite Muslim. In Parliament for every 11 seats there had to
be 6 Christians and 5 Muslims. By this means the semblance of
a parliamentary republic was maintained, though in reality the
country was a multi-cultural entity with a coalition of forces.
Every position in the public service had its communal quotas.
The leaders were hereditary feudal barons rather than party leaders.
We may note the hereditary leaders of the Druse community: the
Jumblatts.

After 1947 with the establishment of Israel to the south another
community joined the existing divisions when the displaced Palestinians
came to live in the refugee camps, which became small towns.

It may have been the presence of the Palestinians which destabilized
the agreement. But there were also outside forces: The Syrians
who continued to wish for the reincorporation of Lebanon into
the Syria of the Ottoman times (and Palestine as well); the Israelis
who attacked the Palestinian refugees to try to prevent them
attacking Israel. Moreover, the Muslim, and especially the Shi'ite,
birth rate was higher than the Christians' so that the Muslims
began to think they did not have the weight in the state appropriate
to their increasing numbers.

The civil war began in 1975. Every community raised its own
private army (and some have more than one army) which formed
shifting alliances with the others. The organs of central government
, including army, police, parliament and presidency became of
symbolic value only.

At the close of the civil war large part of the country became
occupied by a Syrian "peace-keeping force". Another
part was under the control of the Israelis, whose invasion in
1982 caused immense destruction.

Different groups have held prisoners and hostages for periods
of years. Some of these were foreigners. 150,000 people are said
to have died.

Many illegal activities such as drug growing and production
went on unhindered by any police force. Lebanon then was a living
example of the warning of the 17th century philosopher Thomas
Hobbes (in Leviathan) of what can happen if there is no civil
society: The life of man is nasty, brutish and short.

In October 1990, the Syrians began to assert control over
an increasing amount of the territory and the militias at last
came under control as they gave up control of Beirut. The leaders
of the militias became ministers in the government. There was
talk of devising a new constitution which would give the different
communities weight in proportion to their actual numbers, with
a president who will rule. But this did not deal with the forces
of the Syrians and the Israelis, neither of whom seemed likely
to leave their parts of the territory. The civil war may be over
but Lebanon could not be considered an independent state. In
the medium term it seems likely either to be re-absorbed into
Syria or to exist as a Syrian satellite.

However, the Israelis did leave. The peace agreement between
the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organisation
led to the Israelis withdrawing from South Lebanon.

In 2005 the assassination of Rafiq Hariri the former anti-Syrian
prime minister led to increased questioning of the role of the
Syrians (were they responsible?). The Syrian forces withdrew
leaving behind a more pro-western government. But the coalition
government included representatives of Hizbullah, which annoyed
the Israelis. Moreover, although there is a Lebanese army, in
the south of the country Hizbullah is the only real military
force.

An Israeli attack in 2006 led to huge destruction.

In 2008 civil war between Hezbullah and the others seems all
too possible.

Is there a political system? The institutions of the state
were irrelevant to the situation while the power of the gun to
carve out enclaves was the politics which affects ordinary people.

It was as though the viewpoint of Los Angeles street gangs
had become the political reality.

Since the Taif accord which brought the civil war to an end
state institutions have been re-established. But as this is being
done under the protection of the Syrian military the outcome
has been a state heavily influenced by Syria. At times the government
seemed to be a subsidiary of the Rafiq Hariri the PM's property
company. But at least he had the means to rebuild the city.

He left office, possibly in a dispute with Syria, and shortly
afterwards was assassinated by a huge car bomb explosion (15
Feb 05). Syrian forces are suspected.

On 28 Feb 2005 the pro-Syrian government was forced to resign
by crowds in the streets. There were increasing demands for Syrian
troops to leave the country, as well as demands from the Shi'ite
Hezbollah for the Syrians to remain. If they left, would the
civil war resume? It didn't but the new government was a coalition
that included members of Hizbullah, the Iranian funded organisation
that dominated the Shi'ite area (the southern provinces nearest
Israel, and the southern section of Beirut). This organisation
retained its militia, capable of fighting the government army,
and also Israel.

Hizbullah's capture of two Israeli soldiers sparked off a
vicious war in July 2006. Presumably they acted against the wishes
of the other ministers in the government, but Israel attacked
the whole state, while Hizbullah fired rockets into Israel.

Although there is a parliament and elections, in practice
the leaders of parties are hereditary feudal chiefs and the MPs
are often elected unopposed. The result is a party system that
is a formalisation of a permanent civil war. The President is
always a Christian Maronite, the Prime Minister always a Sunni,
and the Speaker of the house always a Shia.

May 2008 saw Hezbollah occupy large areas of the Muslim part of Beirut. Is this the beginning of a renewed civil war?

How will the revolt in Syria in 2011 affect Lebanon? No-one knows. It depends on whether the Baath government of the Assads is replaced, and by what sort of people.